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"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world;
indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." 
Margaret Mead, American anthropologist, 1901-1978
 


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  1. SBC Peru - helping spectacled bears

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    Back in August 2024, SBC  emailed with their annual report.  They are the Spectacled Bears Conservation and they work in Peru towards the conservation of the spectacled bear, otherwise known as the Andean bear.

    The bears suffer from habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and conflict between people and wildlife.  There is a lack of knowedge about them, which impinges on the ability to plan for their conservation, and make decsisions.  And they're the only bear species in South America.  It's estimated there are about 2,500 mature individuals now.  

    SBC's mission is to:

    To conserve and protect spectacled bears and their habitat in Peru through scientific research, education and collaboration with local communities, government and land owners.

    You can read the Annual Report here
    You can read the Annual Report here
    Image copyright SBC Peru

    We need to look after these bears and all wildlife 
    We need to look after these bears and all wildlife
    These bears are vulnerable and they need our care.
    Please support SBC Peru 
    Image copyright SBC Peru

    More about Spectacled Bear Conservation

    Spectacled Bear Conservation was registered as a non-profit organisation in Peru back in 2009.  The aim was to continue research into spectacled bears and to partner with local communities to protect spectacled bear habitat. 

    Bears are fascinated by the camera traps,
    and SBC Peru have had to work to make sure they can 
    protect these vital cameras against the most persistent paws!

    Take a look at this bear here!

    Their Annual Report gives you an idea of the work they are doing.  For instance, their camera trap study in the Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary gave unprecedented data to help strengthen conservationa ction for spectacled bears and the other wildlife in the area.  Data caught on camera really gives wildlife conservation organisations evidence of the presence of wildlife and shows those in government that there is truly a need to protect these areas.

    This bear has climbed to the top most branches of a tree!

    Spectacled bears are keystone species:  they are essential to keep the ecosystem healthy.  And they are an umbrella species, too - they have large habitat ranges.   Protect spectacled bears, and you're also protecting other species such as the mountain tapir, the puma, ocelot and jaguarundi.

    Take a look at this beautiful bear relaxing...

    You can find out all about spectacled bears from the charity's website and donate to the cause of spectacled bears and the work the charity does, too!   Don't forget to sign up for their newsletter - it's free to do!

    There are plenty of things you can do to support SBC Peru, such as:

    Visit Spectacled Bear Conservation here

     In the UK, Knowsley Safari Park give resource support to Spectacled Bear Conservation - their staff contribute to technical projects, education programmes and communication campaigns, for instance.  They have a couple of Andean Bears, and they have keeper talks so that people can find out more about these gorgeous bears!  

  2. Free the Bears rescue more bear cubs and they need our support

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    I love the charity Free the Bears.  They are an Australian wildlife conservation and animal welfare organization and they work with local communities and governments in Asia to help sun bears, moon bears (Asiatic black bears) and sloth bears.  

    So they need protecting.

    As governments work to tackle the illegal wildlife trade, so Free the Bears has more to do, rescuing bears who have been held captive for bear bile farming, educating the public, looking after the bears they have rescued – so far 950 in all.  As more bear bile farms close and Free the Bears rescue those bears, so they need to build more enclosures.   These bears have been captive, in some cases for a very long time.  They cannot go into the wild upon release – they need gentle, loving and knowledgeable expert care.

     

       

     

    These bears have bear necessities

    • They need a healthy diet of fresh fruit and vegetables, with dog biscuits for protein and also pulses and grains
    • They are clever so they need a variety of enrichment activities to stimulate their minds
    • They love to have their own space so they have climbing platforms and hammocks – most bears don’t see other bears in the forest;  they are very private
    • Many of the bears need veterinary care, some for a while.  Remember that many have been used for bear bile farming – a needle has been injected into their gallbladders to access their bile whilst the bears have been drugged
    • Their enclosures have an environment that’s as near as possible to the natural habitat the bears would normally enjoy – these enclosures need maintaining.

     Of course, this all costs. Donations help Free the Bears do these things:

    • Give immediate medical attention and care to the orphaned cubs
    • Procure essential supplies – food, medication, specialised equipment
    • Support on-going conservation efforts to protect both bears and their habitats in the years ahead.



    Free the Bears need help! 

    There are a number of ways you can help care for the bears in the care of Free the Bears:  

    • Be a bear carer – there are different levels available from £5.00 a month. 
    • Sponsor a bear (£240 for a year)
    • Send a gift to the bears such as a jar of honey, a hammock, a climbing frame, a cub care kit donation, a bathing pool donation, a treat ball donation
    • Send a gift for a bear lover to your human!
    • Simply donate!

    Buy a 2025 Calendar from Free the Bears

    Buy a 2025 Calendar from Free the Bears for £11.00.
    It features 13 of the 15 survivors from the 
    world's largest moon bear cub confiscation and rescue
    which occurred in Laos in March of 2024.
    Image copyright Free the Bears

    More about sun bears

    Sun bears are the smallest of all bears, but they have a tongue which is 30cm long (that’s a foot!), huge paws and a sun-shaped patch on their chest which gives them their name. 

    Sun bears are excellent climbers – they live in tropical forests in South East Asia.  There they spend more time than other bears in trees, and make nests there.  They are crucial for seed dispersal and  pest control. The problem sun bears have is that they have lost 60% of their land due to habitat destruction and over-exploitation.  Not only that, they are hunted for their paws and their gallbladders – these are sold on the black market. 

     

    Send rescued bears a pot of honey!
    Send rescued bears a pot of honey for £11.00
    Image ©Free the Bears

    The bears need us all to act.  They have been rescued and they need our help to ensure they get all the wonderful loving care and attention they need for the rest of their lives.

    Visit Free the Bears' website here.

     

  3. World Okapi Day 2024

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    The okapi live in the dense jungle of the Democratic Republic of Congo.  

    The opaki is under threat

    Although it is a respected cultural symbol of the DRC (have had protect status since 1933), the opaki is threatened by human activities: slash-and-burn agriculture, illegal gold mining, logging, encroachment from human settlement and bush-meat poaching.

    Enter the Opaki Conservation Project

    Enter the Opaki Conservation Project which works to protect the natural habitat of the opaki and indigenous Mbuti pygmies who lives in the Opaki Wildlife Reserve.  It also looks to promote the species around the world.

    The reserve itself is a designated World Heritage Site.  It sits within the Ituri Forest, and it encompasses 13,700 square kilometres. As well as the opaki, it is home to animals such as forest elephants, chimpanzees, 13 species of primates, leopards, bongo antelopes and a huge variety of birds and insects. 

    OpakiConservation undertakes wildlife protection, community assistance and conservation education. For instance, it has IUCN eco-guards to collect snares, evict miners, pursue and detain poachers, monitor agricultural expansion and biodiversity.  This is all aimed to protect, manage and secure the Opaki Wildlife Reserve  so that future generations can benefit from its vibrant forest ecosystem.

    And it provides rations for forest patrols and support, and it helps educate communiteis so that they are aware of the Reserve's regulations and protects them, too.  The opaki is an important symbol of their national heritage. 


    World Opaki Day’s aims

    World Opaki Day on 18 October celebrates the opaki – it raises awareness of it as many people have never heard of an opaki.   You can find out more about the opaki here. 

    And crucially, the opaki acts as a flagship species to protect the forest ecosystem where it resides.   

    There are activities around the villages in the reserve and they are combined to educate local communities and protect the opaki.

     
    Visit the OpakiConservation's You Tube Channel here

    Things we can do on World Okapi Day:

    1.  Follow the day on social media and tell people about okapis.  Here are the hashtags and links:

    Facebook: @okapiconservationproject

    Instagram: @okapiconservation

    Twitter: @okapiproject

    Hashtags: #WorldOkapiDay #WOD2024 #OkapiConservation #JourneeMondialedelOkapi

    2.   Recycle your own mobile phone.  Did you know that a cell/mobile phones have coltan?  It’s a mineral mined in the DRC forests, so if you recycle your phone it means less mining in the forest.

    3.   Put okapi photos on social media, using the hashtags hashtags #OkapiConservation and #WorldOkapiDay

    4.  You could also donate to the Okapi Conservation Project – all proceeds go to help protect okapi and its habitat.

    5.  Watch okapi videos!   

    You could also take a look at the Giraffe and Opaki Specialist Group (GOSG) which consists of experts to study giraffe, opaki and the threats these animals face. The group is leading and supporting conservation actions to ensure that giraffe and opaki survive into the future.  The Giraffe Conservation Fund and ZSL (the Zoological Society of London) are co-hosts of the group for giraffe and opaki respectively.  Others involved in working for opaki conservation include the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and Lukuru Foundation who lead the TL2 Project.  The project is seeking to establish a newly protected area - the Lomani National Park - and this area encompasses opaki. 

    You can read the Opaki Conservation Strategy 2015-2025 here.

     

     

     

  4. It was World Elephant Day on 12th August - and there's a "bottle of milk match"!

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    Update, 19th August 2024

    There's great news from the Reteti Elephant Sancturay that a very special match was back for World Elephant Day 2024, and a whopping 9,000 milk bottles were gifted so with the match, that's 18,000 milk bottles for the elephants!   

    You can still donate a milk bottle here.  Please note that the match has now finished but the Reteti orphans still need this milk - they drink a bottle every three hours! (19 Aug 2024).  

    Visit the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary here.

    Original blog:

    On the 12th August, it’s World Elephant Day and a great chance to make a  to that most wonderful of giants, the elephant.

    The Reteti Elephant Sanctuary is Africa’s first community owned elephant sanctuary in North Kenya.    Reteti takes in orphaned and abandoned elephant calves with the aim to release them back into the wild.  In short, they rescue to release!  

    Meet the elephants here

    And this World Elephant Day, there’s a chance to help them!

    Give the elephants a bottle of milk – and it will be matched!  For every bottle you give the elephants, there’s a match with another one.

    Please give a bottle of milk to a baby elephant.

    One bottle of milk is $10.00   Help the sanctuary secure 20,000 bottles which will keep the calves in milk for up to 2 months!

    About 10 to 25 elephant calves are rescued in the area of Northern Kenya every year.

     Give an elephant a bottle of milk here
    Please give an elephant a bottle of milk here
    Thank you!
    Image © Reteti Elephant Sanctuary

    These elephant calves are orphaned or abandoned because of drought, man-made wells which they can fall into, conflict between people and wildlife, and natural deaths.   Local communities wanted to retain elephants within the county and so the Kenya Wildlife Service and Samburu County Government promoted the establishment of a new Sanctuary. 

    The keepers are all recruited from the Namunyak Conservancy ad they have been trained in the care, rehabilitation and release of elephant calves.  The Samburu have been living with wildlife for many years and deeply respect elephants.   You can meet the keepers here.

    You can adopt an elephant for a minimum of USD50 a year, or you can give a bottle of milk. 

    Visit the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary’s website to find out more.

    Please give a bottle of milk here.  Thank you for going to look :-) 

     

  5. Beaver Appeal with the Wildlife Trust of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire

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    The Wildlife Trust for  Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire (BCN)  have a plan (and with it, an appeal, so that they can make their plan happen).

    They want to bring beavers back to Northamptonshire.   It’s been over 400 years since beavers – a keystone species - were last seen there, and the Trust has been given permission to release a family group at the Delta Pit wetland, at the Nene Wetlands nature reserve.

    So here's an update (July 2024) from the Wildlife Trust on how the project is going - it's all very exciting!


     

    The Beaver Trust visited the site and did a full feasibility study and identified the site as a suitable feeding site – it’s also quite away from the public.  Furthermore, the site is a difficult one to manage, with breeding birds in summer and overwintering birds in winter, giving the Trust very limited time to do any work.  so the beavers will be able to manage the habitat work for the Trust.

    The beavers will be in a safe, enclosed area surrounding a lake.  They are excellent eco-engineers, and have an excellent ability to create habitats that will benefit a whole range of animals.  


    The beavers will be busy restoring the wetland habitat – beavering away – and the humans have to do some work of their own beforehand, managing trees and constructing a fence.  This fence is constructed and installed to an exact specification from Natural England – it follows a full site survey. That survey involves considering the risks, so that the Trust can  make sure the beavers are safe and don’t escape.  The stock gates are designed to an approved beaver-proof spec.

    The beavers’ work should benefit wetland birds, creating more roosting and feeding habitat, and invertebrates and bats should benefit from it as well.  The beavers will be doing what humans would be doing, but they will be doing it better (and the Trust themselves said that!)

    One of the exciting things will be the monitoring of the site, to see how the beavers are doing and how their introduction and work is benefiting other species.

    The public visiting the shopping centre next to the reserve will also benefit as they should be able to see the beavers when they visit!

    The Trust has an appeal to raise £73,982 and you can donate to their Beaver Appeal here.

    Anyway, take a look at the project here, and you can find out more about the Wildlife Trust BCN here.